Abstract

An ultrasonicDoppler vibrometer (UDV) is used outdoors to detect vibrating targets buried in grass‐covered soil. The sensor head uses two solid‐dielectric transducers, in a pitch–catch configuration. A first set of measurements is done using calibrated vibrational sources (shakers), whose vibrational characteristics are known and/or easily predictable. Then, the system is put to the test of detecting a landmine buried in a realistic environment. The target (landmine) is excited either by a mechanical shaker or by a loudspeaker, through acoustic‐to‐seismic coupling. The wind speed was monitored continuously. Since it is known that wind degrades the UDV signal, efforts were made to perform the experiments in a still environment. The UDV results are compared with those obtained with a laser Doppler vibrometer.